Eclipse

eclipse is an ANSI C library, focused mainly on image and 1d
signal processing, with emphasis on infrared and visible images and
spectra. The algorithms used in this library have usually nothing
specific to astronomy, they gather the know-how in the field of image
and signal processing and attempt to make them useful to write
astronomical data processing programs.

eclipse is not meant to be an interactive facility.
Accessing a C library can be done in many ways, but there are all
reserved to a programmer. A C library remains a building block for
developpers.

The primary goal of this toolbox is to allow people writing pipelines
for the VLT to program dedicated routines aimed at data reduction for
specific modes of VLT instruments. Programming pipelines from source
code in C is much more flexible than using a high-level processing
language, since it allows virtually infinite addition of new algorithms
and complete control over these. The price to pay is of course low-level
programming, which is a favourite playground for bugs of all kinds.

The library itself is today pretty mature, only occasional bugs are
reported and usually corrected the same day by the supporting team.
The code is simple, robust, commented and documented, and its
foundations are laid on a clear and simple design.

To allow for more convenience when prototyping pipeline recipes, the
library is currently being interfaced to several scripting languages.
As a C library, it could be interfaced to virtually any kind of
higher-level language (this includes C++, Java, Python, Perl, Tcl and
many others). Linking against one of these languages should allow
pipeline programmers to be more efficient in developping their
carefully handcrafted toolboxes for a given instrument. This
functionality is currently not planned to be supported for public
distribution, though, because of the heavy load implied by such
support.